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Who will win this summer’s prize of Steve Bruce declaring ‘Feels like having a new player’

4 years ago
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To be fair, Steve Bruce is playing the role really well.

That role being to stay absolutely positive about Mike Ashley and what is going on at the club.

At every press conference and in each interview, to always talk up the club owner, as well as only talking about positives and not negatives.

You certainly won’t hear Steve Bruce asking where the new state of the art training complex is, that was first promised ASAP by Mike Ashley in 2013.

Nor will you hear Steve Bruce asking when there is going to be proper investment in the Academy.

You certainly won’t hear the NUFC Head Coach going public to question why credible transfers aren’t beingĀ  made available this summer.

Despite reaching day 28 of the transfer window with not a penny spent and less than three weeks until the Premier League kicks off, Steve Bruce has instead only talked about how ‘supportive’ Mike Ashley has been on his transfer plans this summer.

Just like Alan Pardew, JFK, John Carver and Steve McClaren before him, Steve Bruce will always faithfully follow the party line.

One of the Pardew classics whenever Mike Ashley was refusing to allow proper investment in the squad, was to come out with the line that having somebody back from injury, or from out on loan, or even somebody who had been totally ignored and yet we were suddenly supposed to believe was flying in training: ‘Feels like having a new player’, as opposed to actually signing a new player.

Who will win this summer’s competition of Steve Bruce declaring ‘Feels like having a new player’???

Well, we can now seemingly count at least three players out of it.

The papers making a big story these past couple of days out of Steve Bruce telling them that three players could leave. Not exactly earth shattering news when Henri Saivet, Rolando Aarons and Achraf Lazaar haven’t started a single PL match between them since 2017.

Here is my shortlist of who could win the Steve Bruce nomination:

Paul Dummett – After being out injured for the second half of last season, the left-back could definitely be talked up as ‘feels like a new signing’ by the Head Coach, as Newcastle fail to buy a left-back…

Ciaran Clark – Similar story to Dummett, now back from injury.

Andy Carroll – Always a strong possibility if he stays injury free for more than a few days. Steve Bruce even talks Carroll up when he has been out injured for a couple of months and is still injured.

Jacob Murphy – Steve Bruce has already said he will be having a good luck at him in pre-season training after a Championship loan spell. Seems like a canny lad but has never looked a PL player.

DeAndre Yedlin – Looked sure to leave this summer as he is in last year of his contract and was even behind the very poor Krafth who Steve Bruce signed. However, with little / no money for new players, could well be claimed to have ‘bounced back to his best’ in pre-season.

Christian Atsu – Same as Yedlin, looked sure to leave in this window as out of contract next summer and couldn’t get a game last season, but watch out for Steve Bruce describing him as a surprise package in pre-season.

Joelinton – This could be the ultimate ‘Feels like a new player’, Bruce spinning a yarn about how the Brazilian has really come on after a tough first season of learning in PL and is knocking goals in for fun in training etc etc.

Who do you predict to lift the Steve Bruce ‘Feels like a new player’ award?

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